Episode 49: The Cultural Revolution Part V-The Hidden Victims

By 1967, China was engulfed in the chaos of the Cultural Revolution. But the violence of the counter-revolutions and counter-counter-revolutions was not the only source of misery for ordinary people in China. As fear spread and the Cultural Revolution expanded, it began to have a significant impact on the command economy of China. The campaign to eliminate the Four Olds was growing in intensity, leaving businesses destroyed, trade halted, libraries burned, and people struggling to make a living. The entire economy of China revolved around one man: Mao Zedong.

This is Part V in a series on the Cultural Revolution. It focuses on the campaign to eliminate the Four Olds and how this impacted the economy of China. Future episodes will chronicle the further ebbs and flows of the Cultural Revolution.

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